Don't Let The Uniform Fool You
by t3rri
Summary: Santana blames it on Sylvester, she really does. If she hadn't gone and gotten herself suspended, None of this would be happening.                -first attempt @ Glee FF-
1. Don't Let The Uniform Fool You

**_A/N -_****_This Take Place After Sue's Suspension At Sectionals. Lets Just Assume They Had Christmas Break Or Something After The Competition. _****_The Song Is Heartbeats by Jose Gonzales._****_ Also, I'm British, So Sorry For Any Mistakes As Far As The American School System Goes.  
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**_Disclaimer: I own nothing. All belongs to Fox, Ryan Murphy & Co._**

It was the first day back after the Christmas break, and Santana was faced with the question of what to wear for the first time since freshman year. After Coach Sylvester's suspension, a temporary cheerleading coach had been brought in, and she had informed all the Cheerios that from now on, they were only to wear their uniforms on game days.

If she was being completely honest with herself, the idea of walking into Mckinley without the protection of her uniform made Santana a little nervous. Of course, she would rather die than admit that to anyone else, but that didn't change the fact that she her uniform had, without her realisation, become part of who she was. Going into school without it was like going in naked. _Oh this is ridiculous, _she mentally scolded herself. _You are Santana-fucking-Lopez, so get a grip and start acting like it. Just pick the goddamn clothes and be done with it already. _Eventually deciding on a pair of dark navy skinny jeans, black tank top, boots and her leather jacket, she gave herself the once over in the mirror.

_ Yep, _she thought, smirking at her badass-ness, _you look smoking. _Drying off her hair, she opted to leave it down, thinking that she may have actually found a benefit to this no uniform thing – she hated wearing her hair up all the time. Catching sight of the time on her clock, Santana swore to herself and grabbed her bag and car keys, exiting the house at a run. Having to choose an outfit had delayed her more than she'd bargained for, and bar some kind of miracle, she was going to be late. Before starting her engine, Santana quickly sent Brittany a text, letting her know she'd have to meet her at lunch rather than before school like she normally did.

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_ If Coach ever comes back from her suspension, I am going to give her a piece of my fucking mind _Santana thought angrily as she slumped in her chair at the back of her English class. _Coming in naked would have been better than this shit, at least then people would have been too busy being turned on to look at me confused. The next person who even thinks of trying to catch my eye was seriously gonna get it. _Santana let out a sigh and tried to focus on what her teacher was saying, silently praying that Brittany was having a better time of this than she was.

The grin and squeal that Brittany greeted Santana with when she saw her at lunch was enough to show the Latina that the other girl was having none of the issues that she herself was. This didn't really surprise Santana; the other girl was in the cheerios because she loved to dance, and because Santana was in it. The reputation and image aspect of it all had never held much interest for the blonde, and that was something that Santana had always been at least a little jealous of. Brittany was comfortable in her own skin in a way that Santana never had been.

Looking over the outfit the blonde had chosen, Santana had to smirk slightly.

'Britt, its January. Why the fuck are you wearing a summer dress?' Brittany looked down at her outfit, then back at Santana, who raised an eyebrow at her expectantly. Brittany shrugged.

'It's my favourite, and I didn't get to wear it when it was warm. But now we can wear whatever we want, and I didn't want it to think I had forgotten about it. Don't you like it? It's cute.' Brittany gave a little twirl as if that would prove her point to Santana. The Latina rolled her eyes; _trust Brittany to think about the fucking dress's feelings. _The blond was right though, the dress **was **cute. It was light blue and fell to just above the blonde's knees. The colour blended perfectly with Brittany's pale skin and brought out the shocking blue of her eyes, and the way the thin material clung to the dancers toned body made it almost impossible for Santana to tear her eyes away. Before she could help herself, Santana was thinking back over the nights she had spent learning every single inch of the blonde's body; learning what made her giggle, what made her moan, and what made her cling to Santana as if she were the only thing left in the world.

'San?' The sound of Brittany's voice snapped Santana out of her ponderings.

'Hm? Oh, yeah, the dress is cute B.' Brittany flashed Santana a smile that lit up her whole face and Santana felt herself grinning back. Offering the taller girl her pinkie, Santana led them to the cafeteria, where, after eventually convincing Brittany that Coach wasn't spying on them through the security cameras, she bought herself and her best friend the first proper lunch either of them had since starting high school. _Yep_, Santana thought to herself as she watched Brittany enjoying her food, _there were defiantly benefits to Sylvester's absence._

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Santana knew that the only reason she had managed to make it through the remainder of the day without beating the crap out of anyone one was because of Brittany, who thankfully shared the last two lessons with her. Every time Santana reached near breaking point, Brittany seemed to sense it, and placed a calming hand on her. At least, it was intended to be calming, but Santana had practically jumped out of her seat when she'd felt Brittany's hand on her thigh the first time. While she was fairly sure that Brittany's intension had been to calm her rather than send her hormones crazy, either way it meant that the lucky jackass who was staring at her got keep full use of all his body parts.

When it was time for the last lesson of the day, Santana and Brittany made their way to the choir room. Both had the period free, and the room was always empty last lesson on a Monday. Spending this hour in the choir room had been a tradition of theirs before they had even joined Glee. Santana had been using the Choir room to practice whatever chance she had since freshman year, and Brittany, finally giving into her curiosity at the start of the year, had followed the Latina one afternoon, and ever afternoon since. Prior to the blondes spying session, Santana had snuck away by herself, telling Brittany and Quinn that she had detention, to practice her singing and piano in secret.

Santana had always loved music. Her grandparents had taken her to see an open air orchestral performance when she'd gone to visit them one summer, and she'd been hooked. At 7 and a half years old, little Santana Lopez knew what she wanted to do when she grew up. She wanted to play music on a big stage, and she wanted people's eyes to water when they heard her. Wanting to encourage this new fascination with music, her grandparents had surprised her with a violin for her 8th birthday. Thinking back on it, Santana figures that they should have realized that this was a bad idea, because seriously, what 8 year old was going to be able to play violin? She had tried though and the afternoon that she had finally managed to play her first piece all the way through, she'd run to show her Papi, who, when Santana had played a few wrong notes by mistake, had ripped the instrument from the small girls hands and smashed it against the wall, effectively ending the girls dreams of being a professional violinist. Of course, at 8 years old, you change your dreams like you change your socks, so over the course of the next two years, Santana tried every single hobby she could think of.

Aside from her love of music, every other aspect of Santana's personality had been more suited to playing rough. She'd loved nothing more than hanging with Puck and Finn, constantly besting both of them in whatever sport they'd decided to play that week. However, once they reached Middle School, the boys had stopped playing with Santana. The only time Puck would even talk to her was when he wanted to make crude jokes at her and/or look up her skirt, and Finn always just blushed and ran away.

Realizing that the rules had changed, Santana had gone on a mission to find a new niche in life. When cheerleading tryouts had come around, Santana had realised that joining the team was the perfect solution to all her problems. Not only would it allow her to get back at Puck and Finn for being total jerks, but it would also get her Papi off her back. What Santana hadn't counted on was the effect that being a part of the cheerleading squad would have on her social life. While it had taken a few weeks for Santana to work out the ropes of popularity, once she had, the rest was easy. She'd quickly befriended Quinn Fabray who, even at 11, was clearly someone whose good side you wanted to be on. By time the girls started high school, Fabray was at the top, and Santana was second in command. Brittany had joined the cheerios in 8th grade, and Santana, taking pity on the girl, had invited her to sit with them. She'd immediately taken a shine to the quirky blonde, and convinced Quinn that Brittany would be an asset.

8th grade had been a good year for Santana. Not only had she met her best friend (She and Quinn had always had too much competition between them to truly be best friends), but it had also been the year that she'd rediscovered music. She'd had to keep it a secret however, because her Papi had expressed numerous times how much of a waste of breath he thought it was. Plus, she had an image to uphold, and there was nothing threatening about singing or playing piano what so ever. Through the remainder of middle school, her music teacher had given Santana free piano and vocal every two weeks. Once she entered high school, the lessons had stopped, but Santana made sure she put aside time to practice, because, despite the fact that no one ever actually _heard _her, Santana would be damned if she didn't remain at the top of her game.

Brittany had been ecstatic when she'd discovered best friend's hidden musical ability, and it wasn't until she'd dragged Santana to round to her Dad's that Santana really understood why the other girl had been so excited. Brittany's parents had split up, and she'd stayed with her mum, so Santana had never had reason to meet Brittany's Dad before. But the man had been something else. At Brittany's request, he had played guitar for Santana, and it was amazing. The guitar was something that Santana had never tried, so when Brittany had whispered in her ear that she knew how to play, and could teach her too, the blondes inclusion into Santana's secret practices was a no brainer.

'I am so not feeling piano today' Santana groaned wearily as they entered the Choir room and her eyes fell on said instrument. Brittany grinned at her, unlinked their pinkies and practically ran across the room to the supply closet. Santana watched as the blonde disappeared, and then came out armed with both her own guitar, and the Latina's. Santana laughed, and walked across the room to take the guitar that the blonde was holding out to her. 'How'd you know?' she asked, and raised an eyebrow sharply when Brittany scoffed at her.

'Please San. You're all stressed 'cause people kept looking at you weird today. I don't get it though; did they really think you didn't own anything except your cheerios uniform? Anyways, I figured you'd be grumpy today, and us playing together always makes you smile, so I came prepared.' Brittany finished with a wink. Santana shook her head, and looked up at the blonde with an expression of admiration that was reserved solely for her; solely for moments like this. It was no secret that Brittany wasn't the brightest crayon in the box academically, but the blonde's ability to read people, and in particular Santana herself, was something that the Latina was sure most of their classmates were completely unaware of. Brittany's tendency to not think before opening her mouth frequently led to people writing her off almost instantly. In fact, Santana was pretty certain that other than herself, the only person who actually listened to Brittany for a reason other than simply cheap laughs was Quinn. She also had a sneaking suspicion that her best friend was developing a friendship with Manhands, but Santana was firmly of the belief that if she didn't bring it up, then it wasn't happening.

'So,' Santana said, settling herself into the chair opposite the blonde, guitar in hand, 'what do you want to start off with?'

'Well, I finished working out Heartbeats last night, want me to show you?' Brittany looked up from her guitar and smiled at Santana, who grinned back, she'd been looking forward to this one.

Brittany spent a few minutes going through the different chord changes and picking patterns with Santana before suggesting they gave it a try - Brittany taking the main riff, with Santana singing and joining in as accompanying guitarist during the choruses. Santana watched as Brittany began to play the steady introduction. It fascinated her that someone with as much energy as the blonde normally radiated could be so calm the instant you gave her an acoustic guitar. Blue eyes locked with brown a fraction of a second before the Latina began to sing, and the two girls remained focused intently on each other throughout the entire song, neither wanting to break out of the fragile cocoon they had built around themselves.

Unfortunately, their private session wasn't as private they'd hoped, and the instant their song ended, the sound of clapping resonated through the choir room. Santana whipped her head around to see a completely stunned looking Mr Schuster standing slack jawed across the other side of the room, his eyes flicking between the two girls as if he had never seen them before. _Crap, _Santana groaned internally, her previous foul mood returning tenfold, _and here I thought today couldn't get any shittier. _

_TBC_

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**_a/n - thanks for reading. reviews would be greatly appreciated x _**


	2. The Safety That Comes From A Lie

_**Disclaimer: I own nothing. All Belongs To Fox, Ryan Murphy & Co.**_

'Yes?' Santana asked pointedly at Mr Schue, who still had yet to pick his jaw up off the floor, 'You want something?' She stood up and folded her arms across her chest, scowling at him. 'Or are you just gonna stand there perving? Because i've gotta say that really is kind of...' She cut her sentence off when she felt Brittany's hand on her arm.

'Be Nice San.' The blonde murmured in her ear. 'Hi Mr Schue.' Santana rolled her eyes; she could tell by her voice that Brittany was no doubt sporting her trademark grin. _So much for a united front_.

Mr Schuester seemed to snap out of his shocked daze at the sound Brittany addressing him.

'Hello Brittany, Santana. I have to say girls, that was incredible. Why didn't you tell me you were this good?' The excitement in the teacher's voice was painfully obvious, and Santana couldn't help but envision all her plans for the rest of high school going down the drain. He would make them perform in front of the rest of Glee, and then that would be it. Her secret would be out and it would be all over. _Fuck Sake. _

'San doesn't like people knowing.' Brittany blurted out. Santana turned around to glare at the taller girl, who had clapped her hand over her mouth, eye's wide. She grimaced under Santana's glare and the Latina rolled her eyes in exasperation before turning back to face Mr Schuester in an attempt to do some damage control.

'Look, so what if we can play. What's the big? It doesn't change anything. All you need us for in Glee is backing vocals, which we're more than happy to do...' Brittany let out a little squeak which was most likely the result of her forcing herself not to speak again. Santana prayed that the blonde didn't open her mouth, because she knew that Brittany would want to argue with her on the fact of being happy not having a solo. All Santana ever did after glee was complain about not being given a solo, but she'd be damned if Schuester found that out.

'Santana...'

'No, Mr Schue. Whatever you're thinking, just no.' She had to give a little snort at the pout that formed on his face. 'Come on Brit, We're leaving,' she said looking back at the blonde, who had a small frown on her face. _Ergh, I'm gonna get a fucking lecture when we get out of here. _ Brittany followed her out of the room without a word, holding both of their guitars, neither girl giving Mr Schuester a second glace as they pushed passed him.

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A few hours later the 2 girls were spread out on Brittany's bed, both mentally drained from working on Brittany's math homework – Brittany because she hated math, and Santana because she hated trying to _explain _the math. Santana was lying with her eyes shut when she felt the bed shift slightly.

'San.'

'Yeah Brit?' She murmured quietly. The bed shifted again and Santana felt the familiar body of her best friend curl up against her side.

'You shouldn't have said all that stuff to Mr Schuester.' If it wasn't for the fact that the blonde had wrapped her body around Santana and was currently tracing small circles on the shorter girls arm, the Latina would have been pissed at the Brittany for calling her out. As it was, she was just too damned comfortable. When Santana didn't reply, Brittany let out a small sigh and nuzzled her face further into the other girl's neck. 'I know you're dying for a solo, why didn't you just tell him that.'

'I don't want to deal with everyone's crap. My music is none of their business. '

'Liar.' The blonde whispered into Santana's ear, and despite the tingles that Brittany's breath against her neck was causing, Santana pulled away, scowling down at her best friend.

'I'm no liar.' Brittany raised an eyebrow at her. 'What?' Santana snapped at her.

'You're scared.' At Santana's glare, Brittany rolled her eyes. 'Oh don't look at me like that S, I know I'm right. Your music has been this big secret of yours for like _ever_, and now you might actually have to share it with people, and that's scary.'

'I've shared it with you' Santana shot back. Brittany gave her a small smile,

'I _so_ don't count. Now come back over here.' She said tugging gently on Santana's wrist, who relented and allowed Brittany to pull her into her arms. Santana wasn't sure when exactly it was that Brittany had worked her way through all of her defences, but there was no denying that she had. The Latina dreaded to think just how vulnerable and pathetically needy she must look cradled in to Dancers arms, but fuck it, no one was here other than the two of them, and Santana was way past pretending that she didn't need the blonde. Without her she'd have gone crazy long before now. Brittany was her rock, her best friend, her... well; Santana wasn't sure what else she was. She'd been relentlessly telling the blonde that 'Sex Wasn't Dating' for months now, ever since they'd started hooking up on a regular basis. But Santana wasn't completely ignorant. She could tell how Brittany felt about her. The way the blonde looked at her...Santana had never imagined that anyone would ever look at her with such adoration. She sure as hell didn't deserve it, that's for sure. This wasn't even the real issue though. Santana was 99.9% sure that she looked at the blonde the exact same way, and that was a _big _problem. She'd tried to avoid falling for Brittany, she really had. For the couple of months following their first time together, right after her split with Puck, she had made a point of avoiding any sort of snuggling sessions with the blonde –anything that might complicate matters, (more than sleeping together already had) but then one night Brittany had turned up at Santana's house unannounced and had just broken down, convinced that Santana hated her and didn't want to be her around anymore. It had been one of the most heart wrenching things Santana had ever had to witness, and she'd sworn in the instant that she'd never put Brittany in a position where she'd feel like that again. Since then, snuggling sessions very much like the one they were currently in had become a frequent occurrence.

'Maybe you're right.' Santana whispered, so quietly that she was surprised Brittany had even heard her.

'Of course I am.' Brittany whispered back. Nudging Santana's foot with her own she added 'I'm more than just a pretty face you know.' Santana snorted quietly at that statement, and pulled herself tighter against Brittany's body. There were very few people who would have taken that statement seriously; particularly coming from someone who for the past two hours had been convinced that equations were the government's way of sending messages to undercover agents (Santana had eventually calmed Brittany down enough to convince her that Mr Karmen wasn't really a spy.) Thankfully though, Santana had learnt quickly that, if you just sat and listened to the sometimes slightly insane things that the blonde came out with, you might be surprised to find that you actually learnt something. Not always though, it had to be said. Sometimes even Santana was left feeling utterly confused, and a little bit afraid as to where Brittany got her logic from. The fact that, to this day Brittany was convinced that her cat could read her diary was one that Santana just could not understand. She had even gone as far as asking Brittany's parents about it, only to find that they were as much at a loss as she was. Oddness aside however, Brittany was one of the most loyal, trusting, understanding people Santana had ever met, and often pulled Santana up about things that no one else would dare to - their previous conversation being a prime example.

Quiet snores teased Santana from her thoughts, and she couldn't help the smile that worked its way onto her face when she prised her eyes open to see Brittany sleeping soundly next to her. Making the decision to get up early enough in the morning to give herself time to go back to her house to change and grab her things, Santana rested her head on the blondes chest, closed her eyes and allowed Brittany's heartbeat to lull her to sleep.

_TBC_

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**_a/n - let me know what you think, please R&R : )_**


	3. One Step Forward And Two Steps Back

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. All belongs to Fox, Ryan Murphy & Co.**

By second period Santana had had enough. People were still staring and that pathetic blogger freak had actually tried to talk to her when she'd passed him in the hallway after Spanish. She knew that she had to do something drastic in order to get the social hierarchy at McKinley High back up the right way again. She'd heard enough grumblings during before school Cheerios practice to know that she wasn't the only one suffering from a lack of respect due to their new coach's stupid rule. Lucky for her, the inspiration as to how to restore order came while she was waiting for Brittany, in the form of the hockey guys terrorising some freshman kid with slushies.

Santana called an emergency Cheerios meeting at the start of lunch, and announced her plan to the rest of her team. Her suggestion for an all out slushie attack was greeted with varying degrees of enthusiasm. The eyes of the more callous girls lit up at the thought of humiliating more than just the usual targets (believe it or not there were rules in regards to slushies) but Santana could make out a few frowns among the group as well. Brittany in particular did _not _look happy. Despite their obvious objections however, no one questioned Santana's suggestion for a quick fix and by the end of lunch, the fear was back in the eye's of McKinley High's student population and Santana and her Cheerios owned the halls once more; uniforms of no.

There had been a slight hiccup on Santana's part though. During the targeting process, she had locked eyes with Rachel Berry, and despite the fact that the girl had clamped her eyes shut and tensed her body in preparation; Santana had bypassed her in favour of a random kid two lockers down. Let's get something clear though; it is not as if she was starting to have warm fuzzies for Berry or anything. It's just, as much as Manhands irked her; Santana was not going to slushie on someone from her own team. That just wasn't right.

Besides, Brittany would kill her.

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Most of the club were already present when the two Cheerios walked into Glee that afternoon. Still high off the success of Mission: Slushie, Santana was feeling none of her previous apprehension. Even the fact that everyone fell quiet the instant her and Brittany walked in did little to shake her confidence. Smirking at the strained, timid smiles she received from the gleeks huddled around the piano, Santana made her way over to Quinn and the boys, wordlessly claiming the empty seat by Matt. Despite her re-established self assurance, Santana was still grateful when Brittany passed on the chair Quinn offered her and remained standing behind her, playing with Santana's hair and occasionally caressing her shoulders. Catching Puck staring at them from his spot next to Quinn, Santana opened her mouth to tell him get the smirk off his face before she removed it for him. However, before she got the chance, Mr Schuester came bounding into the room, with Berry and the walking poster child for awkwardness that was Finn Hudson hot on his heels.

'All right guys, take a seat.' Santana felt the loss of Brittany behind her immediately and shifted in her seat slightly, waiting for the rest of the club to quieten down enough for Schuester to launch into one of his usual over enthusiastic speeches.

'Ok, so I just wanted to say that I am so proud of what you guys did at Sectionals. However, it was a rocky road to success, and if we want a decent shot at Regionals, we have some serious chances to make.'

_And here we go,_ Santana thought to herself as she sat back into her chair and waited for Schuester to deliver his no doubt _groundbreaking _solution to all their problems. Casting a quick glance around the room, she saw a mixture of boredom, slight fear, and absolute concentration on the faces of the different club members.

'All was very nearly lost before sections due to issues amongst different member's of the group. This term you all need to work harder at getting along. Mingle outside your comfort zones. From now on, any social divisions that exist outside this room **stay **outside this room. You are a team guys, and you all have so much to offer.' Santana could feel his eyes on her, 'It would be a shame to not only lose nationals, but to also miss out on whatever special talents any of you could be holding back because of the issues you have with each other.' Rachel chose this moment to pipe up, and Santana couldn't decide if she was happy for the interruption, or whether, regardless of what Berry was about to say, her voice was more annoying than hearing the rest of the Schuester's speech.

'Mr Schuester, I couldn't agree more.' A quiet, unanimous groan could be heard from the rest of the club, and Santana was certain that she was not the only one to roll her eyes when the tiny brunette stood up to address her team mates. 'While we did indeed make a tremendous amount of improvement in an admittedly short amount of time, the drama, rivalries and divisions are currently preventing us from working to our full potential. Now, I admit that I myself have been a prime example of each and every one of those afore mentioned points, however I am willing to put in the effort to change things for the better.' Rachel was looking around the room with a grin so large that it made Santana cringe.

'Sure thing, whatever, we get it. Can we get to the point already?' Santana looked over at Puck, who was looking at Mr Schuester expectantly. He sounded as enthused by the idea of 'team building' as she was.

'Yes, of course Puck,' Mr Schuester reclaimed the floor from Rachel, and looked around. 'So, I'm going to pair you all up...yes Brittany?' Santana glanced over at the blonde, and by the look of pure excitement on her face, Santana knew exactly what the blonde was about to say.

'Will there be ducks again?' Brittany was practically bouncing up and down in her seat in anticipation, and the look of dismay on her face when their teacher shook his head and replied that no, there would be no ducks prompted Santana to make a mental note to take Brittany to the park again. After the whole Ballard fiasco the blonde had been _convinced _that Mr Schue was keeping ducks hostage, and the only thing that had been able to assure her otherwise had been a trip to the park. Santana had to smile at the memory of how her best friend's face had lit up when she'd seen the ducks safe and sound in the pond. It had pretty much been the most adorable thing ever.

'Anyway, these pairings won't be at random. I don't care if you aren't happy, i expect you all to put in the effort and _make _this work. So without further ado...' With that, Mr Schuester began to list off the pairings: Brittany and Kurt (_Brittany must be ecstatic, she finds Kurt fascinating_) Mercedes and Quinn (_hmm, seeing what they came up with would certainly be interesting_) Tina and Puck (_let's hope Wheels doesn't get jealous_) Finn and Mike (_Santana had to hold back a snort at this one. Finn's lack of coordination would drive Mike insane_) and Matt and Artie. Now that just left...

Santana's head shot up and she stared at Mr Schue in horror.

'Santana, you're with Rachel.' The tension in the choir room the instant Mr Schue uttered Rachel's name was thick enough to cut with a knife. Until both girls erupted simultaneously.

'You've got to be having a fucking laugh, there's no...'

'Mr Schuester, I really don't think this is a good...'

'Girls! This pairing is final. You two will be working together for the next week, so get used to it. You never know, you may actually learn something. Also, Santana? Watch your language.' Santana fell back in her chair unable to comprehend her fate. _That's it, its official. The universe hates me. _Throwing a discreet look over at Rachel, she was at least slightly pacified by the fact that Manhands looked as unhappy about this turn of events as she was.

Mr Schuester went on to explain that the aim of the assignment was to find out something about your partner that you didn't know, and choose a song that you felt showed them in a different light. Santana was only half listening to him though; she was too caught up in trying to work out how she was going to survive a week paired with _Rachel Berry _of all people. The last time the two of them had been paired together had been 7th grade, and it had resulted in Rachel winding Santana up so much that she had threatened to beat the girl up and lock her up somewhere where no one could ever find her. Santana had been forced to apologise to Rachel in front of their entire class. Safe to say that they'd failed that assignment.

Next thing Santana knew, the people around her were getting up and leaving. Mr Schue had apparently dismissed them all during Santana's trip down memory lane. Sighing heavily, the Latina bent down to pick up her bag. When she stood up, she found her exit blocked by a short brunette.

'Look Santana, I know we don't have the greatest relationship,' Santana raised her eyebrow at Rachel, 'and while I must admit that working with you really doesn't equate to a lot of fun in my book, maybe Mr Schuester is right. So I suggest we attempt to put previous issues behind us, at least temporarily, and try to complete this assignment to the best of our ability. I noticed that you decided against hitting me with a slushie during you attack in the hallway this afternoon – thank you for that by the way, so I feel that all may not be lost. Also, I suggest we start rehearsals as soon as possible, as I have just realised that I know absolutely nothing about you, and vice versa, so we have a lot of work ahead of us if we want to be successful.' Santana stared at Rachel for a few seconds, trying to digest everything the other girl had just said. 'Did you hear what I just said Santana?'

'Huh? Oh yeah. Sure, fine, whatever. Just don't ever say that much to me in one go again Manhands, you've given me a headache. Here's my number,' Rachel looked mildly horrified when Santana grabbed her arm and proceeded to write her cell phone number on it. 'Text me when/where and all that. Also, any rehearsals will have to be here or at yours, my house is out of the question.' Before Rachel had a chance to ask Santana why exactly they couldn't practice at her house, the Cheerio was out of the door, followed closely by Brittany, who shouted goodbye to Rachel over her shoulder.

_TBC_

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_**a/n - if anyone is wondering, there won't be any pezberry romance, but i think the characters spark, so a friendship may be in the works. **_

_**Please spread the love and leave a review. Comments, criticisms, anything you like : ) **_


	4. Eventually Something Will Have To Give

_**A/N - This Follows Straight On From Chapter 3, Its That Evening**_

_**Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. It All Belongs To Fox, Ryan Murphy & Co.**_

Tuesday nights were spent at Santana's house, as it was the one night of the week that both of her parents worked late. Santana knew that Brittany looked forward to Tuesdays the most, although Santana wasn't sure why because as far as she was concerned, the blonde's house was by far the more appealing of the two. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with Santana's parents; it was just that so much more had to be kept hidden during conversations with them, and with Santana's father in particular. The only things that could really be discussed were the Cheerios and how school was going. When Santana had joined Glee alongside Brittany and Quinn, she'd spent weeks thinking up new excuses as to why she kept arriving home late. There was no way that she could let her parents could find out because, if playing music and singing was looked down on, what on earth would her Papi make of Santana joining _Glee Club _ofall things? In the end, Brittany had inadvertently let slip about it during a conversation with Santana's Mom around the time that Quinn's pregnancy came out. Santana's Father had hit the roof, and was about ready to drive over to Mr Schuester's house so that he could _witness _Santana telling him that she was quitting until her Mom stepped in and told him to calm down, and that it would probably look good for college's – something about it proving she had diversity, from what Santana could remember.

'Is it cool if I go make us some drinks, S? Brittany asked once they arrived at Santana's.

'Knock yourself out, I'm gonna go see if there's anything on TV. Just bring the drinks through to the living room when you're done Britt.' Brittany nodded and skipped off down to hall towards the kitchen while Santana headed into the living room.

By time Brittany made her way in with the drinks, Santana had settled on a music channel and was lounging, legs outstretched on the recliner sofa. Brittany put their drinks on the table and sprawled herself across the length of the sofa so that her head was in Santana's lap. The two girls relaxed together to about 15 minutes, watching the videos and making the odd comment on the singers and whether or not they could give the dancers in the videos a run for their money before Santana mentioned anything that had gone down at School.

'Hey B?' Santana began, as she ran her fingers soothingly through Brittany's blonde hair, 'What do you reckon about Schuester's assignment?'

'I think it awesome.' The other girl replied, her eye's still fixed to the people on the TV. 'Kurts nice and he has _amazing _outfits. Did you see his fuzzy sweater today? Do you reckon if I'm real nice to him this week he'll let me have one? They remind me of baby animals – all fluffy, ya know? He's got loads; I bet he wouldn't miss just one.' Santana laughed at the mental image of Brittany in one of Kurt's knee length sweaters and to humour the blonde she suggested that Brittany offered to teach him another one of Beyoncé's dances, because she knew for a fact that the other girl had them all memorised. Brittany giggled at the suggestion before turning slightly so that she could look at Santana

'Sorry you got paired off with Rachel, S. I would offer to swap but...'

'Lemme guess, the idea of a fuzzy sweater is just too much to turn down huh?' Santana said, with a raised eyebrow as she looked down at Brittany, who was wearing a slightly sheepish expression. 'Its fine, whatever, I just hope Schuester isn't expecting us to actually do the work – I am gonna kill Manhands before the weeks out.'

'Suggestion? Try to avoid that. Also, you might wanna stop calling her Manhands, at least just for the week.' Brittany said, smirking up at Santana, who let her head fall against the back of the sofa in defeat.

'For fuck sake, I'm actually gonna have to be nice to the freak aren't I? Forget killing Berry, its Schuester that had better watch out. What the hell is he playing at, pairing me with that? Remind me again why we're still a part of this stupid club?'

'Because _someone_,' Brittany elbowed Santana in the stomach gently, 'said it was the best her day.' The blonde's clear blue eye's twinkled as she looked up at Santana, who rolled her eyes in response.

'Crap. I did say that huh?'

'Yep,' Brittany giggled as she sat up slowly, so that her face was level with Santana's, 'and everyone heard you.' Santana sighed dramatically; her eye's not leaving Brittany's.

'Damn, not one of my smartest...' The rest of the Santana's sentence was cut off by Brittany capturing her lips in a gentle kiss. Unfortunately, before Santana could do so much as kiss back, the front door slammed and the sounds of her father's voice filled the house as he called for her.

'Fuck!' Santana hissed, pushing Brittany away from her. 'In here Papi!' she shouted, shooting Brittany an apologetic look as she stood up.

'It's ok.' The blonde mouthed back, smiling.

'Santana!' Mr Lopez greeted his daughter with a smile and a hug. It wasn't until he released her that he spotted Brittany. Santana couldn't help but notice how his smile noticeably faltered the instant he laid eyes on the blonde, who had also risen from the sofa and was standing a few feet away. To her credit though, Brittany seemed unaffected by this and gave the burly man a bright smile.

'Hi Mr Lopez, how was your day?'

'Fine, thank you Brittany.' He replied in a tone so dismissive that it made Santana cringe. 'Now Mija, how was school? Did you get a chance to speak to Mrs Beckinsdale about the grade she gave you for your last assignment because...' As her father began his usual enquiry into her school life, Santana spotted Brittany leave the room, assumedly going to the kitchen say hello to Santana's mother. Santana let out a small sigh as she listened to her father tell her that she needed to find out how she could improve, because the B- she had been given was just not good enough. Her mind was elsewhere though. Specifically, it was with the small, resigned smile that had been thrown Santana's way by her best friend as the tall blonde had disappeared from the room. The Latina hated that, despite the fact that her and Brittany had been inseparable for the past 2 and a half years, and despite the fact that the blonde was undoubtedly the _nicest_ person you'd ever meet, her father still refused to really acknowledge Brittany's existence. Upon meeting the blonde, he had asked her what she wanted to do after high school. As soon as Brittany had said that she wanted to dance, that had been it. The fact that she wasn't exactly the pinnacle of academic achievement was just icing on the cake. Santana thought this was kind of hypercritical of her father, because at least Brittany had given him an answer; at least she had a goal. Santana had absolutely_ no clue _what she was going to do once high school was over, and her father knew as much. Despite her dreams of being a musician, she wasn't naive enough to think that she could pursue that without her parent's financial backing, and there was _no way in hell _that her Papi would go for that.

* * *

Once Santana's father had finished grilling her about school, Santana excused herself and went to say hi to her mama, and fetch Brittany. The blonde appeared to be engrossed in a conversation with Santana's mom about a new cheerios routine, and the huge smile on her face helped to ease Santana's guilt a little. Thankfully, her Mama was not as tightly wound as her Papi was, and had immediately taken a liking to Brittany's infectious personality. It was no secret that Mrs. Lopez thought that Brittany's happy go lucky attitude was a good influence on her typically sullen daughter.

'Hey S!' Brittany grinned once she spotted Santana leaning against the door frame. Santana returned the grin and looked over at her mom;

'Hey Mama, is it cool if Britt stays for a few hours?' She asked. Her mom chuckled.

'You know it is. You girls head upstairs, I'll give you a call when dinners ready.' She said, waving them out of the kitchen. Brittany giggled and grabbed Santana's hand, pulling her up the stairs two at a time.

* * *

Before Santana could comprehend what was happening, she was on her bed, flat on her back with Brittany straddling her, the look on her face making Santana uncharacteristically nervous.

'Err B; I doubt this was what my mom had in mind when she sent us up here...'

'Shh. What she doesn't know won't hurt her,' Brittany whispered in her ear as she trailed kisses along Santana's jaw line, down her neck and then along her collarbone. It wasn't long before Santana gave herself over to Brittany's advances, letting the blonde set the pace. With anyone else, the Latina would be the one on top in a heartbeat; making sure things were on _her _terms, but with Brittany...It had taken time, mind you. More than once in the beginning, Brittany had tried to top her, and Santana had flipped them. Eventually though, as with everything else, Brittany had worked her way around Santana's issues and given her the most amazing night of her life. It hadn't changed anything as far as Santana's interactions with guys, but for the two girls, it had changed the dynamic of their relationship completely. Before, Santana had been the leader, and Brittany the follower; without question. But once Santana had put herself totally at Brittany's mercy, in a way that she had never done with anyone else, everything was different; something had _clicked. _Brittany was special, and Santana could no longer try to deny otherwise.

The idea that they were becoming more than 'friends with benefits' had scared the shit out of Santana, so she had made Brittany _swear _that she would still see other people, and while the blonde had agreed, Santana knew for a fact that the only other people Brittany actually went out with were the ones that were triple dates with Santana. Santana on the other hand had been out with numerous guys since her and Brittany had started their...benefitting, and hooked up with even more guys still at parties. It wasn't a secret; Brittany knew about every single one. Santana used the fact that Brittany had _agreed _to this as a means of justification, but that didn't stop the pain that hid in Brittany's eyes from tearing Santana up inside. She knew this had to stop, because if it was hurting her this much, she didn't even want to think about how much it must be killing Brittany.

* * *

Coming down from her high, Santana pulled Brittany up from her position between her legs and held her close, biting her tongue to prevent those three words from spilling out; three words that, if said in a moment like this, would change _everything._

TBC

* * *

**_a/n - let me know what y'all think, reviews are the best kind of presents : )_**


	5. You've Got To Give Some To Gain Some

_**A/N - I Know Its Been A While Since The Last Update, But Uni Is Coming Up And I've Been Crazy Busy.**_

_**Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. It All Belongs To Fox, Ryan Murphy & Co.**_

Santana had barely made it into the school parking lot Wednesday morning before her phone went off. Seeing the message was from an unknown number, Santana released a small groan before opening it, because there was only person it was going to be from.

_Good Morning Santana, This Is Rachel Berry. You Said I Should Text You In Regards To Rehearsals, And I Was Just Wondering If Today At Lunch Time You Be Sufficient For You?_

In all honesty, Santana had tried to wipe the fact that she'd been paired with Berry out of her mind since her conversation with Brittany the previous night. Clearly though, the same couldn't be said for Rachel. Pulling her keys out of the ignition with one hand and texting with the other, she quickly replied:

_Yh, lunch is fine, see you then Berry – S_

before grabbing her bag and going to meet Brittany.

* * *

The morning passed incident free, which while of course being a good thing, was a total bitch at the same time because Santana had been hoping for an excuse to get out of meeting Berry. Brittany had sent her a text telling her to be nice, and Santana had replied that Brittany needed to stand by just in case she needed a quick escape.

Rachel, of course, was already in the choir room when she arrived. Checking her watch to make sure that she wasn't late enough to get an earful, Santana sauntered up to Rachel, who was sitting at the piano playing something the Latina didn't recognise.

'So Berry, how we gonna do this thing?'

'Oh, hello Santana, I didn't hear you come in.'

'Clearly. So you got a plan or what?' Santana asked, trying to get to the point as quickly as possible. Rachel being Rachel was bound to have planned out at least their first three rehearsals, so Santana hadn't seen the point of even thinking about it until she'd heard Berry's ideas.

'Well I propose that we spend the first few days trying to get to know each other whilst simultaniously brainstorming ideas, and then begin practicing the actual numbers at the weekend. Now i admit that i would not normally leave the rehearsing until quite so late, however I feel that in order to make the most out of this assignment it is vital that we spend time over these first few days getting to know each other better.' Santana nodded slowly. Rachel's plan did make sense. The only noticeable drawback was the fact that by the sounds of it, Berry was intended in spend _a lot _of time with her. _Guess the plan of minimal contact is pretty much out of the question. I'm gonna kill Schuester. _Santana let out a sigh and leaned against the piano. _Guess I better at least make some kind of attempt at this._

'So Berry, what were you playing when I came in? I didn't recognise it.' Rachel looked up at her, stunned at having been addressed without a hint of sarcasm.

'Oh, It Seasons Of Love from Rent.'

'Rent? That's a Musical Yeah?' Rachel nodded.

Yes, It is a Rock Musical based on a group of struggling musicians and artist who are living in New York and are battling HIV/AIDS. It was nominated for 10 Tony awards in 1996, and won 4. It was the also the 8th longest running musical when it eventually closed after 12 years on Broadway in 2008 and...'

'Whoa Berry; I didn't need its entire history. But a rock musical? That doesn't seem up your alley, I thought you were all about ballads and shit?'

'Well Santana, just because Ballads happen to be my forte does not mean that I do not appreciate other styles of music. It is important to have a diverse approach as you never know what may be around the corner. Besides, Seasons of Love _is _a ballad.' She looked pointedly at Santana, causing the Latina to roll her eyes.

'Whatever. Let's hear it then.' Rachel's eyebrows shot into her hairline, and when she didn't say anything for a few seconds, Santana let out a small sigh. 'Berry, I'm waiting.'

'Oh right. Well, Ok.' As Rachel played the song, Santana let the music flow around her. She couldn't help the small smile that worked its way onto her face as she imagined the harmonies in her head. It really _was_ a nice song; she'd have to get a copy of the soundtrack from somewhere, her curiosity was defiantly peaked.

Once Rachel had finished playing, she looked hesitantly up at the Latina, seemingly surprised that she'd been allowed to play the entire thing without interruption. Catching the look of fear in Rachel's eyes, Santana made a decision that she hoped she wouldn't regret.

'Ok Berry, stop looking at me as if I'm going to kill you or something. I promised B that I'd actually make a go of this, which includes letting you catch a break - not that you particularly deserve one mind you. So chill, because you've got a temporary 'get out of jail free card' or whatever. Just for this week though.' The way Berry's eyes lit up was slightly unnerving, but Santana brushed it off. It wasn't like she'd promised to be the girl's best friend or anything. However, Santana really didn't feel like looking like an idiot in front of the rest of glee come next Tuesday, and this week was going to be a total failure if she didn't do something. 'Right then, you gonna show me how to play that Rent song or what?'

'But i thought we agreed that...' Santana let out a quiet groan of exasperation;

'Not as a rehearsal, Berry. I'm sticking to the programme, don't you worry. The song was cool, that's all, so i want to learn it.' Rachel beamed at her, and it took a lot for Santana to prevent herself from rolling her eyes.

'Well, i'm not sure whether this will be too complex for a beginner, but i am certain i can simplify it in order to make it easier to play.'

'Oh please,' this time the eye roll was on perfect form. 'You think i can't handle it?' Santana snorted. The sceptical look the other girl was giving her was enough to trigger Santana's slightly dangerous competitive nature, and even though the Latina knew that she was moments away from blowing open the aspect of her personality that she had worked so hard to keep under wraps since Middle School, there was no way in hell she was going to let Berry think she was a beginner at _anything._

_

* * *

_

It had taken only two demonstrations for Santana to pick up _Seasons of Love_. It had been as easy to play as she'd expected, and the Latina was fairly sure she'd had given Berry such a shock when she'd sang the harmonies pitch perfect without instruction that the small brunette would never recover. Rachel hadn't said one word since Santana had played the song back to her without fault, and while not hearing Berry rambling on certainly made a nice chance, it was defiantly not normal.

'Cat got your tongue Berry?' Santana remarked with a smirk. Rachel merely blinked at her. 'Suit yourself then,' Santana shrugged and picked up her bag, making her way to the exit. 'Catch you later Berry.' Santana had almost made it to her locker before she heard Rachel calling her. Turning on her heel and stalking up to the brunette, she grabbed Rachel by the arm and threw her into a nearby classroom, shutting the door behind them.

'What do you think you're playing at Berry?' she growled. 'Just because I said I'd lay off does _not _give you permission to go addressing me in public!' Rachel rolled her eyes at Santana, which did nothing to calm the Latina's temper.

'You left before we could arrange our next rehersal, Santana.'

'Are you kidding me Berry? That is what cell phones are for!'

'Well I felt it would be more appropriate to discuss it in person. Also, I wanted to ask you where on earth you learned to…'

'Not important,' Santana cut the smaller girl off. 'I don't care when we reherse Berry, i already told you that, remember. Just don't expect it to be happening at my house.'

'Well then, I propose we spend tonight thinking up ideas and topics of conversation – we cannot, after all, spend all our time practicing songs from Rent. Then if we could meet up again during lunch tomorrow and also spend a few hours at my house in the evening? It may sound like a lot, but we really have very little to go on at the moment and week will be over before you know it.' Santana spent the next half a minute trying to work out a reason as to why meeting up twice in one day was too much, unfortunately though, Rachel was right.

'Ergh, fine.' Rachel flashed Santana a tooth grin.

'Fantastic! Now, could i bring the conversation back to the issue of why you have never before mentioned...'

'Sorry Berry, Gotta Run.' Santana interuppted, cutting the brunette off for a second time, and walking away. Just as she reached for the door handle Santana turned and fixed Rachel with a glare. 'And don't you even think of following me out of this room straight away. Leave it at _least _5 minutes before you even so much as poke your head out. Can't have people thinking i've been sneaking off with you.' She looked Rachel up and down with an expression of disgust which was proably inapproprite under her new 'be nicer to manhands' rule. However, the girl was wearing a checked knee length skirt and a sweater with a picture of...Santana could only assume that was meant to be a horse knitted on it. So the look was completly justified.

'See you in Glee.' Santana said over her shoulder as she pulled open the classroom door and stepped out into the busy hallway, leaving behind her a more than slightly irritated Rachel.

TBC

* * *

_**a/n - i decided that Santana probably isn't the type of girl that is into musicals. She probably studied classical music, and songs that she liked personally, so therefor her having never heard anything from Rent made sense**_

**_Comments Are Love : ) R&R_**


	6. The Escape Is Only Temporary

_**A/N - Back To Some Brittana After Last Chapter's Pezberry Focus  
**_

**_Disclaimer: I Own Nothing. All Belongs To Fox, Ryan Murphy & Co._**

Glee passed without any major issues. Schuester had them practicing for Regionals, so he left the subject of their assignments alone. This was a major relief for Santana because it meant that she could just relax with Brittany at the back of the room between numbers without having to worry about Berry, who was far too wrapped up in telling individuals off for whatever inadequacies she had managed to spot in their performance to attempt another conversation. Santana knew that she'd have to come up with some ideas to give Berry tomorrow, but at the moment she was caught up in a silent game of 'how far' with Brittany, and the feel of the blondes hand slowly creeping up her thigh was far too distracting for her to give a fuck about what Berry was saying.

Santana finally caved when Brittany's actions finally became far too risky to be performed in the choir room. Grabbing the blonde's hand and placing it in the other girls lap, Santana shot the dancer a glare.

'You're a fucking tease B.' she growled under her breath. Brittany flashed her best friend a faux- innocent smile and leant over to whisper in her ear.

'Wasn't that the point?' Santana's scowl deepened. 'I won, by the way. What's my prize?' Santana cast her eyes quickly around the room to make sure no one was paying them any attention before turning her head to give the blonde a quick kiss.

'Later.' She replied in a murmur as she pulled away. A silent agreement passed between the girls that the game was now over, and Santana returned her attention to Berry daringly going off at Quinn about the fact that she was sharp, again. _Fucking brave if you ask me. Then again, Q hasn't really been herself since the start of the whole pregnancy thing, so chances of something starting are pretty slim. _Santana had decided to keep out of her former captain's shit since it had become obvious who the baby-daddy was. It wasn't even that fact that Puck had been her man when Q had hooked up with him that pissed her off - Santana wasn't an idiot, and she'd never really invested enough in her relationship with the boy to give a shit whether or not he was still sleeping with other girls, so long as she didn't have to hear about it. But Q was supposed to have been one of them. Quinn, herself and Brittany had been a team, _the _team; and Quinn had betrayed that. Sure Santana felt some guilt over the fact that Quinn didn't seem to have anyone these days, and she'd be lying if she said that the thought of wiping the slate clean hadn't crossed her mind. But then she thought back over what Q had done - not only to Santana herself, but also to Puck and Finn who despite being pathetic excuses for football players and all-around idiots, did not deserve what Quinn had put them through – and she felt significantly less guilty.

'Thank you Rachel.' Mr Schuester's voice cut through Santana's thoughts about her former best friend, and she refocused her attention on him. 'Now, how is everyone progressing with their assignments? I know its early days yet, but I hope you've all made a start.' Santana groaned and slumped in her seat as she saw Rachel's hand shoot into the air out of the corner of her eye. 'Yes Rachel?'

'I just wanted to inform you all that Santana and i have in fact begun our project, and while it may be early days, I am confident that we will, by the end of the set time, have two fantastic performances ready for you all. I feel that you should all be spurned on by our enthusiasm, Santana in particular is showing surprising commitment that I would not have predicted.' Seemingly oblivious to Santana's death glare, Rachel threw her a brilliant smile as she returned to her seat. Santana sat battling between whether to kill Berry for humiliating her (she could hear their teammates giggling, regardless of how quiet they thought they were being) or for insinuating that Santana wasn't usually committed. Either way, the bitch was going down.

Santana felt Brittany's hand on her knee, stopping her from rising from her seat.

_Or maybe not_

_

* * *

_The two Cheerleaders were sitting in Brittany's back garden brainstorming what Brittany and Kurt could do as a bonding activity. Or at least, that had been the intention, but Santana was in fact ranting about Rachel and her stupid speech during Glee, as she had been for the last hour.

'You should have let me take her.'

'S…'

'I mean it B, where the hell does she get off saying stuff like that in front of everyone'

'San, seriously…'

'Does she not know who I am? I have a reputation for god's sake, now everyone is going to think I'm this stupid gleek that…'

'_Santana!' _Brittany snapped, in a tone that Santana didn't hear very often. As mellow as Brittany usually was, the blonde did have a breaking point, so Santana decided it would be best for her to just shut up before she reached it. Bringing her pacing to a halt and lowering herself down so she was sitting next to the other girl, Santana leaned back against the tree that Brittany had sat herself under and waited for the blonde to speak. 'You can't kill Rachel; you need her to be your partner,'

'I do not _need _Berry for anything.' Santana's voice still held the bite from her Rachel Berry fuelled rant.

'Chill out Santana! I'm on your side, remember?' Brittany shot back.

'Yeah, I know. Sorry.' She offered the blonde her pinkie before resting her head on her shoulder. 'I'm just stressed, that's all.' Santana felt herself slip into the unique sense of security that only Brittany provided her with, and let out a sigh, feeling a little of the persona she put on for school gradually slip away as she breathed in the scent of Brittany's perfume.

'Look S, unless you show Rachel what you can do, she's totally gonna think she can like, take control and stuff, because you don't care. All you have to do is put her right about that, and you'll be sorted.'

'Hmm. Well actually, Berry may not be as completely clueless as she was before.' Santana mumbled, her head shifting on Brittany's shoulder as the blonde let out a laugh.

'That didn't take long.'

'Well the bitch called me a beginner, no way was i gonna let that lie. Should've seen Berry's face though, it was priceless.' Brittany giggled before turning to look at Santana, dislodging the Latina from her shoulder.

'How comes Rachel didn't say anything about it in Glee? I figured she'd be all over it.' Santana rolled her eyes;

'Oh trust me, she was. I had to drag her into a classroom to get her to shut the fuck up.' Brittany raised her eyebrow in a silent question, and Santana shuddered at the mere prospect.

'Urgh, no B, don't even think it. This is Berry we're talking about. I just didn't want people thinking I was actually on speaking terms with her. So I chucked her into the room and yelled at her a bit. She's dying to know what's going on though. I had to keep cutting her off before she had the chance to ask anything.'

Seeing the way Brittany had tensed up at the mention of Santana dragging Berry into a classroom, Santana knew that she couldn't leave her talk with the blonde about the true nature of their relationship much longer. The problem was, Santana wasn't actually sure what she wanted the outcome to be. She had wanted to leave it until she was 100% sure what was going on in her head before she broached the subject to Brittany, but she knew their relationship was suffering due to the limbo they were currently stuck in, and Santana couldn't risk any irreversible damage being done. Her relationship with the blonde, even in its current state of uncertaintly, was the best, most stabel thing in Santana's life.

'Fancy a run B?' the blonde looked at her, confused.

'Huh?'

'You heard me. Come on.' Santana pushed herself up, and then offered Brittany her hand. 'Just because Sylvester isn't breathing down our necks doesn't mean we should let ourselves slip. Besides, I'm beyond sick of talking about Rachel-fucking-Berry. I swear, I've had enough of her and it's only been a day.' Brittany smiled and allowed the Latina to pull her up.

'Sounds like fun. I'll race you!' With that the blonde took off, leaving a bemused Santana alone in the garden for a couple of seconds before she too exited the garden at a run.

* * *

The two girls collapsed onto Brittany's bed after their run. Santana cast a quick glance over at the blonde as she tried to calm her breathing. Brittany's face was flushed, her hair was a total mess, and the way her chest heaved against the small tank top she'd changed into after school wiped all thoughts of serious talks out of Santana's mind. Smirking, the Latina shifted her position and began trailing kisses over Brittany's stomach, taking the Blonde by surprise.

'S-San. What're you doing?'

'Giving you your prize.' The Latina whispered as she hooked her thumbs in the waistband of Brittany's shorts, smirking against the girl's skin as she felt a shiver go through the other girl's body.

'O-Oh, Ok. Cool' Brittany breathed as she fell back against the headboard while Santana showed through touch everything she failed to express with words.

TBC

* * *

_**a/n - a massive thanks to everyone who has added this to their alerts, and to all the reviewers so far. And even if you haven't reviewed, thanks for reading. **_

_**more to come soon : )**_


	7. The Sacrifices You Make For Success

_**A/N – Sorry For The 3 Month Or So Delay In Updating – Stupid Life Getting In The Way. But The Holidays Are Coming Up, So Hopefully That Will Mean More Chances To Update : )**_

"God damn it Rachel! Would you shut it about the damn song! Hello, I _am _a member of Glee, it's not my fault you were to fucking self-involved to notice that I wasn't completely talentless!" Santana had been listening to Rachel try to bring up her 'hidden talent' in almost every other sentence over the past 2 hours and she was very close to her breaking point. She'd begrudgingly agreed to come over to Rachel's with hopes of making some progress on the assignment, but it had quickly become apparent that they were not going to be able to function without a third person present to keep the peace. Thankfully, Brittany was on her way over to Berry's to join them (Santana had been hit with the most amazing brainwave ever at lunch) so Rachel may in fact survive the night. But it would be a close call.

"I just don't understand why you refuse to answer my questions? It perfectly rational that, as a key female lead in New Directions, I'd like to know why one of our members has been hiding their, from what I could gather from the brief demonstration you gave me, quite considerable talent! It is entirely selfish of you!" before Santana had a chance to answer; a voice joined the conversation from the doorway.

"She wasn't doing it to be selfish." Brittany had seemingly entered the house without either girl noticing – not surprising considering the volume their voices had risen to over the course of the argument. The strength of Brittany's tone shut Rachel up, which filled Santana with relief. Unfortunately, the blonde followed up her statement with "She just didn't want you to know that she'd been learning piano and singing since forever because she didn't want people to think she wasn't a badass." Santana dropped her head into her hands and released a groan. For once, however, Brittany's face showed none of the usual remorse it did when she spilled one of Santana's secrets. Instead, all Santana could see was resolve, and she knew that her friend had said what she had deliberately. Clearly she'd felt it was something Berry should know.

"Well cheers for that Brit." Santana muttered, and Brittany rolled her eyes.

"Sorry S, but you weren't gonna tell her, and you _know _the assignment would have been a total waste otherwise." Santana rolled her eyes and returned her attention back to the Berry, whose expression hadn't shifted since Brittany had first entered. Feeling the bed shift under her, Santana glanced over as Brittany took a seat next to her. "…S, I think we've broken her." The blonde whispered, and Santana snorted.

"No B, _you _broke her. I had nothing to do with this thank you very much." Santana replied with a smirk, which only widened when Rachel snapped out of her shock induced daze and began to stare at the two Cheerios on her bed, her eyes flickering between Brittany, who had her head rested on Santana's shoulder, and Santana who had unconsciously begun trailing her thumb up and down the inside of the blonde's forearm. Once Santana realised what exactly Rachel was staring at, she stopped her actions, and folded her arms across her chest. "Yes?" she asked pointedly to Rachel, deciding to get the inevitable explosion of words out of the small brunette as quickly as possible.

"I…You…This is all very confusing." Rachel huffed in far fewer words than Santana had expected. Brittany giggled, and Santana's smirk was this time directed at Rachel rather than Brittany.

"Not really Berry, you're just kinda slow. So, we gonna get on with this shit then?" Santana said, deciding that throwing themselves back into working on the assignment was probably the safest thing right now. Rachel, apparently snapped out of her Cheerio induced trance by the prospect of more rehearsing, jumped up and resumed her ramblings about the possible song choices. Santana for her part tuned the diva out and turned back to Brittany, who had made herself comfortable on Rachel's double bed and was taking her time admiring Berry's array of stuffed animals, paying particular attention to fuzzy yellow duck that was perched on a pillow.

"Don't suppose you brought your guitar did you?" Santana muttered to the blonde, who grinned and nodded, mouthing '_in the car' _in response.

_TBC_

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**a/n – sorry this chapter is so short. the next update will be longer, but I wanted to get this out to let you guys know I'm not abandoning the story. happy holidays everyone x**_


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